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Google App Engine vs Pantheon comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 15, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Google App Engine
Ranking in PaaS Clouds
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
33
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Pantheon
Ranking in PaaS Clouds
18th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
Web Hosting Services (10th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the PaaS Clouds category, the mindshare of Google App Engine is 2.2%, up from 2.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pantheon is 0.7%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
PaaS Clouds
 

Featured Reviews

OmkarPatil - PeerSpot reviewer
Simplifies app development process for businesses
The product simplifies app development processes since once the local development is completed, my company has a common configuration in place where we can specify the requirements to run an application, after which we need to do a one-click GCP deployment for the entire application. In general, the two offer managed deployment options, so we don't have to worry about deployment. In my company, we just configure the servers and check if anything needs to be containerized, after which GCP handles everything for us. A project where Google App Engine scalability was essential was when, recently, my company was involved with Golang to build a web application, after which deploying that application on Google App Engine was really easy. In my company, we also had a Django application in Python, and it was easy to deploy. As my company deals with small-scale projects, the automated scaling feature of Google App Engine is not something we thought about. I wouldn't recommend the product to others unless the potential end users use GCP and have a word with their vendors about their plans. One specific recommendation from me would be that the product's potential uses should stick with a particular vendor. If someone wants a product that is easy to deploy and scalable, then multiple options are available in the market. The product integrates very well with other Google solutions. I rate the overall solution a ten out of ten.
Abhinand Gokhala K - PeerSpot reviewer
The product is user-friendly and performs well, but it is very costly compared to other tools
We are a software development company. We recommend solutions to our clients, but they ask us to compare it with other solutions. Clients compare the monthly costs of Pantheon with other servers and ask us to create the same environment in dedicated servers. If Pantheon reduces its cost, we can confidently suggest it to clients. Overall, I rate the tool a seven out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The customer service is excellent and very responsive."
"The seamless integration of Google App Engine with other Google Cloud services has enhanced my application capabilities by allowing us to trigger Cloud Jobs from App Engine and some cloud functions, as handling messages through Pub/Sub."
"The product's setup and deployment phases are easy."
"The initial setup is okay. It's not too complex. Deployment took about one day."
"I've found that all of the features are valuable, especially the shared drive and the ability for multiple people to use their documents at the same time."
"Google App Engine's most valuable feature is self-management. You do not have to manage the infrastructure underneath where all the functions are happening, such as load balancing deployment and version management, they are managed by the system itself."
"Seurity features - unauthorized individuals are unable to access certain applications."
"I've noticed measurable benefits and return on investment by choosing Google App Engine."
"Pantheon has the most valuable workflow model."
"The product allows users to create multiple development environments."
 

Cons

"The product's price is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"The main drawback with Google App Engine's standard environment was its restrictions. We could not work with file systems, run shell scripts from the environment, or use WebSockets."
"Difficult to assess how pricing is managed."
"Data consumption of the device could be improved."
"Currently, we have to use Google CLI and utilize Google App CLI SDKs for deployment. If options were available to enable these SDKs for Terraform and CloudFormation, it would be more helpful for executing one-click deployments."
"Google Cloud support for Google App Engine is very poor, with unresponsive and unaware agents. It took them almost a month to inform me that SSH is not possible with private instances."
"I am limited to sending a photo to five people. I want to be able to send a photo to many people, not just five."
"The documentation and community are lacking for this product."
"Pantheon has the most valuable workflow model."
"The Multidev environment is very costly compared to other tools like AWS and GCP."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"If we don't know how to work with the tool, we might have some spikes in price."
"We pay the license yearly. It's about $6 a month, which is $72 a year per person, so it's about $500."
"I would like to have more free application with it. Some of the applications, I am paying more for them. I think that they must be free."
"The platform has reasonable pricing compared to other systems."
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Comparison Review

it_user8586 - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 14, 2013
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Amazon Web Services, Rackspace OpenStack, Microsoft Windows Azure and Google are the major cloud hosting and storage service providers. Athough Amazon is top of them and is oldest in cloud market, Rackspace, Microsoft and Google are giving tough competition to each other and to Amazon also for…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Educational Organization
11%
University
6%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Educational Organization
9%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Google App Engine?
The product's setup and deployment phases are easy.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google App Engine?
Google App Engine's pricing seemed reasonable to my employer. However, I cannot make comparisons as I don't have experience with other managed services.
What needs improvement with Google App Engine?
While integrating Google App Engine with other services, I don't recall any specific challenges. The main drawback with Google App Engine's standard environment was its restrictions. We could not w...
What do you like most about Pantheon?
Pantheon has the most valuable workflow model.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Pantheon?
The platform has reasonable pricing compared to other systems.
What needs improvement with Pantheon?
Pantheon's design is not familiar to use. It could be more user-friendly.
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Khan Academy, Best Buy, Gigya, MetOffice, Getaround, Mimiboard, NewsLimited, WebFilings, and CloudLock.
Patch, Maine Today, Alley Interactice, Scranton Gillette, AdRoll, Cisco, nVidia, Boston Herald, Tableau, Dell, Kyriba, Huddle, IBM
Find out what your peers are saying about Google App Engine vs. Pantheon and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
859,129 professionals have used our research since 2012.